Clippers Fail in Try at a Relay : Pro basketball: Four players take shift work with Shaquille O’Neal, who has no problem scoring 32 points in Magic victory.

All-star center Shaquille O’Neal, who has a Superman emblem tattooed on his left biceps, isn’t faster than a speeding bullet and he can’t leap tall buildings in a single bound.

But O’Neal flew over the four Clippers who tried to guard him, scoring 32 points, including 20 in the second half, when the Orlando Magic built an 18-point lead and handed the Clippers their third consecutive loss, 102-91, Wednesday night before 12,498 at the Sports Arena.

The NBA’s leading scorer with a average of 29.7 points in his first 23 games, O’Neal made 14 of 16 shots, including eight dunks. He also had 10 rebounds.

“It was like standing next to a house,” said Clipper center Matt Fish, who picked up three fouls in five minutes while trying to guard O’Neal, who looked bigger than 7 feet 1, 301 pounds.

“It was like trying to get around a Cadillac. When he puts his arms out it seems like he’s as big as an upside down Christmas tree.”

O’Neal, who had six dunks in the second half, electrified the Clippers’ largest Sports Arena crowd of the season with an acrobatic reverse slam that left the basket shaking two minutes into the final quarter. O’Neal’s dunk came after Clipper forward Loy Vaught missed a layup off a three-on-one break.

Charles Outlaw, a 6-8 forward who gave up 90 pounds to O’Neal, opened the game at center and took two charges early in the game when O’Neal tried to overpower him.

“I was kidding Bo before the game, and I call him ‘LW’ because he always has to have the last word,” Clipper Coach Bill Fitch said. “I told him, ‘You know, I told you in training camp that if you kept getting the last word I was going to get even with you. Tonight’s the night.’

“Bo did as heck of a job for what he had to do--getting in front of him and taking the charge. The guy (O’Neal) is tough. He’s a future Hall of Famer.”

Outlaw had faced O’Neal in high school.

“There aren’t too many people in the league who can guard him one on one,” Outlaw said. “You stand between him and the basket and wait for the double (team) to come.”

Who’s was the toughest guy O’Neal has played against?

“Three guys on every team,” O’Neal said.

Tony Massenburg and Eric Riley, a seven-foot center who signed with the Clippers last Sunday, also took their turns trying to guard O’Neal.

Fish, who began the game with 7:51 to play, drew three fouls in 1:10 before departing. Maybe Fish had the right idea because free-throw shooting is O’Neal’s weakness. He demonstrated that by missing 11 of 15 foul shots.

Guard Nick Anderson scored 19 points and forward Horace Grant had 17 points and 13 rebounds as the Magic, which has the NBA’s best record, made the Clippers, who have the worst, disappear.

O’Neal, who made nine of his first 10 shots, scored eight of Orlando’s first 10 points in the third quarter, when the Magic built a 75-57 lead. The Clippers got no closer than nine points thereafter.

Clipper rookie forward Lamond Murray had a team-high 18 points, but made only nine of 23 shots. Guard Pooh Richardson, who had missed 17 of 18 shots in his last two games, made five of 12 shots and had 11 points and 11 assists.

The big crowd, which included Laker forward Cedric Ceballos, who was seated courtside near Billy Crystal and Clipper owner Donald T. Sterling, came to see O’Neal, but Anderson put on a shooting display and Orlando took a 54-45 halftime lead.

Anderson, who had made 55 three-points baskets coming into the game, third most in the NBA behind Phoenix guard Dan Majerle (59) and Indiana guard Reggie Miller (57), made five of eight three-point shots and scored 17 points in the first half.

Double teamed for much of the first half, O’Neal made five of six shots and had 12 points and five rebounds. Grant made five of six shots as Orlando shot 62% (21-34) in the first half.